Is coal really the "the liver of Mother Earth"?I may be too white to understand that line of thinking, but I'm not too white to agree that we must start infusing some morality into our capitalist system.
Judith Nies' "The Black Mesa Syndrome" (pages 117-128) provides a sickening historical account. Basically, $100 billion dollars in coal is hiding under the ground -- ground controlled by Indians. Nevertheless, what the white man gives, he also takes away (as soon as he finds out its worth something).
Lawyer John Boyden plays the villian in this story, and I have no doubt that he thought he was doing the "right thing" by representing both the interests of the Hopi and Peabody. Of course, he got richly rewarded for doing the right thing, to the tune of at least 2.7 million dollars.
And after all, isn't this a question of "greater good"? Who cares what happens to a few thousand Indians if white capitalists get stinking rich, and if Phoenix and Las Vegas get the energy and water they need?
And one final question: Why are megacities allowed to exist in deserts? How stupid are we to have allowed this to happen?
For more on this story, the following links might be useful:
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